Couragion Expands CS Challenges For High-Demand SysAdmin Skills

Couragion is proud to announce our new Systems Administration (SysAdmin) CS Challenge! It’s a combination of career exploration and contextual work-based skill building activities to teach students about jobs of the future. Students gain practical occupational and essential skills and apply that knowledge to solve authentic problems. Did you know that there are nearly 400,000 people employed in the area of systems administration today?

With Couragion, students must ensure that the enterprise’s IT Systems work well so that employees can successfully do their jobs. Students complete tasks that mimic what a SysAdmin would do in the real-world such as fielding employee escalations, securing equipment for a new hire, and monitoring network usage. These tasks enable students to learn and practice skills in the areas of network functionality, software and hardware components, technical support, and systematic troubleshooting.

The SysAdmin Challenge is a great addition to our other CS/CT focused Challenges that cover units on product management, user experience (UX), data science, and quality assurance. Our units are intentionally designed with elements that better engage underrepresented populations by incorporating such things as diverse STEM role models, recognition and encouragement supports, and a greater purpose. In addition, we’re aligned to educational standards such as ISTE and CSTA.

Christiaan is our featured Systems Administrator role model from Swiftpage. Within Couragion, he describes a typical workday, highlights important skills for the job, shows the office environment, and explains the path to obtaining such a career. Along the way, students reflect and rate their impressions so that they can understand how the job stacks up to their interests, values, and desired work characteristics. By sharing his story, Christiaan is inspiring students and building their STEM confidence – as evidenced by the following student comments:

“I like troubleshooting and helping people – so this could be a great fit for me!”

“The IT field is interesting to me and I would enjoy working there.”

I’d like to conclude with a special thank you to Christiaan for his willingness to serve as a STEM role model. You are essential to boosting the confidence of students in pursuing STEM careers and for that we are truly grateful!

We’d welcome the chance to give you a personalized demo of our new SysAdmin Challenge and highlight how our units can supplement your CS, technology, and STEM curriculum.